Real Madrid 2 Barcelona 0 (5-1 Agg): First-Half Barca Failings settle Supercopa
While Madrid's tweaked attacking trident made a flying start, the missing 'N' in Barcelona's 'MSN' forward line was glaringly obvious after 10 minutes.
Valverde opted for a new-look 3-5-2 formation and Suarez perhaps forgot he was shorn of an attacking comrade when he squared for nobody in the box.
Keen to match the efforts of his colleague on the opposite flank, Vazquez curled a shot against the inside of the left-hand post shortly after the half-hour mark, as Barca struggled to create chances for Suarez and Messi.
Madrid netted their deserved second seven minutes from the break.
Benzema's quick-thinking exposed Umtiti's laboured defending and the striker latched on to a Marcelo ball into the box to smash home from close range.
Keylor Navas – making his 100th Madrid appearance – did not have a save to make in the first half, but he showed good reactions to get down and intercept a Suarez cutback early in the second.
1 - Barcelona only attempted one shot vs Real Madrid, their fewest in a first half of a game in 2017 (all competitions). Lost.
OptaJose Barca were showing signs of life and Messi saw an effort crash off the underside of the crossbar before Suarez went close with two headers – the second bouncing off the foot of the post after Navas had parried a fierce Messi drive.
But Madrid were comfortable with their four-goal aggregate advantage, and Barca's mini-recovery proved fruitless on a night when they were outplayed by their fiercest rivals for the most part.
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